Architecture News

On Friday, May 7, the winning proposal of the second "Imagining Machines" (Máquinas Imaginantes) open call was announced. The initiative invited architects, researchers, and writers to reflect on "machines" of the past and present operating within architecture as tools for social analysis and production. The open call accepted both real and speculative projects, incorporating installations, historical documents, archival material, performance formats, and publications that engaged with the creation of imagining machines.

On Wednesday, May 15, the winners of the BBConstrumat 2019 Awards, curated by the Fundació Mies van der Rohe Barcelona, were announced at the Roca Gallery Barcelona.

At each Ibero-American Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism, the Ibero-American Prize for Architecture and Urbanism is awarded: a recognition for those who have worked to promote and defend the values of the discipline in the region.

The XI Ibero-American Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism (XI BIAU) recently announced the 210 selected projects for its upcoming edition, which will take place for the first time in Asunción this October.

The winners of the Panorama of Works Award will be chosen from this shortlist, which includes the following 18 Mexican projects:

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As part of the exhibitions held during the 2019 edition of the Abierto Mexicano de Diseño, Emiliano Godoy, Mauricio, and Sebastian Lara of Lara Hermanos joined forces to collaborate on the design of the piece Arcum. The installation was custom-made to debut at the launch of the new Tecnotabla Melamines, which took place at the Ex Convento de Santa Teresa, the oldest convent in Guadalajara.

In February of this year, construction will begin on the renovation of Plaza de España in Madrid. The project is a collaborative effort by design firms Guadiana and Porras La Casta Arquitectos, led by architects Lorenzo Fernández-Ordóñez and Fernando Porras-Isla.

The project, known as Welcome Mother Nature, seeks to create a large green area in the city center, recovering its long-lost identity as a "plaza," which had been reduced to a transit space. The proposal emphasizes the definition of a plaza as a "social place of expression, gathering, and freedom." The project's main priority is to create a space where "it is easy to build shared civic experiences," while creating a new lung for a city that constantly lives under a cloud of pollution and smog.

To date, the Universidad Austral de Chile (UACh) has restored more than a dozen historic houses in Valdivia, and is expected to continue this work in the coming years. Located in two main areas of the city—Isla Teja and the corridor known as the Yungay-General Lagos Axis—the university is committed to repurposing these existing structures, transforming them from family residences into public-use university spaces.

Dear readers,

Hello Wood Argentina, the creative, professional, and social program that aims to teach thinking with one's hands, has announced the 10 projects designed by architects, designers, artists, professionals, and academics that will be part of its fourth edition. The event will take place in March 2020 in the Municipality of Ceibas, Entre Ríos Province.

The Universidad Austral de Chile will build the Museo Humano—which will house works by artist Mario Irarrázabal—at the UACh Museum Campus on Isla Teja, Valdivia. Cristián Undurraga is leading the project, an architect who is also heading the restoration and expansion of the nearby Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC Valdivia).

The winners of the National Award for Sustainable Architecture and Urban Design (ADUS) have been announced, an initiative aimed at recognizing and promoting the integration of sustainable guidelines, strategies, and actions in architectural and urban design projects across Argentina.

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On November 7, the winners of the National and International Editions of the 2019 CEMEX Building Award were announced during a ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Polanco hotel in Mexico City. Here is the list of winners.

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Colonia Roma is considered one of Mexico City's architectural jewels, shaped by early 20th-century trends that stood as a symbol of Porfirian aspirations. The neighborhood, one of the city's most prominent and home to a large community of creatives, is a living entity that constantly evolves. It attracts both domestic and international tourists who enjoy walking along its tree-lined streets, taking in the vibrant architectural styles and diverse culinary scene.

From October 10 to December 12, the second edition of the MUGAK International Architecture Biennale of the Basque Country is taking place. This event not only explores the link between art and architecture, but also aims to engage the public and foster reflection and connections with other disciplines, serving as a forum for dialogue and debate to achieve better, more balanced, and fairer cities.

The *Tres Turons* (Three Hills) Park is one of the most important green lungs in the city of Barcelona. Located between the districts of Horta-Guinardó and Gracia and comprising the Turó de la Creueta del Coll, the Turó del Carmel, and the Turó de la Rovira, the park features a complex topography that offers exceptional aerial views of the city. Although the Barcelona City Council has planned to revitalize the area since 1953 by creating a large green zone to serve as a green lung, leisure hub, and rest area, opposition from local residents has delayed its development. Consequently, the site is currently in a state of degradation that threatens its environmental value. To address this, the City Council recently launched a competition under the guidelines of the 2010 master plan. The initiative aims to preserve the park's biodiversity, ensure ecological resource management, redesign pathways and activity zones to encourage public use, improve connections with surrounding neighborhoods, and reorganize the Can Baró quarries area.

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As part of Beijing Design Week, the Mexican Architecture Forum will feature presentations by the architects from PALMA, PRODUCTORA, Estudio MMX, and TO on September 6 and 7 at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, China.

The Ministry of Culture, through the National Institute of Fine Arts (INBA), invites submissions for the 17th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Biennale 2020. Applications are open to select the works that will represent Mexico at the exhibition, which will take place at the historic "Arsenale" naval and military complex in Venice, Italy, from May 23 to November 29, 2020.

The XXI Chilean Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism announced São Paulo as the guest city for the event, which seeks to focus on “the common and the ordinary.” Chilean architect Paula Monroy, in collaboration with Marcella Arruda and Helena Cavalheiro, will present a series of urban, artistic, and architectural projects focusing on the paulista middle class with the proposal “Dialogues and Limits.”